all because of that damned troll
by Day loves music j
Summary: Instead of hiding when Catrina accused him of having stolen her seal, Merlin turned himself into a girl and thanks to destiny got more than he bargained for.
1. Chapter 1

**First things first, I don't own Merlin, and this story starts during season 2 episode 6, so I suggest that if you haven't, you watch it before you read. Now, let's begin the story!**

After assuring Gwen that Merlin would be fine, Gaius reentered his chamber to see a girl sitting at the table, only a blanket covering her body. She seemed familiar, but he couldn't quite put his fingers on it. The mysterious girl had striking blue eyes, prominent cheekbones, waist length raven hair that curled at the end and not even the loose blanket could hide the fact that she was well endowed. Then she smiled, a smile Gaius would recognize anywhere.

"Merlin?!"

"Yeah!" He answered happily. "Now I need not worry about being caught and can still protect Arthur." He explained, and Gaius nodded, still a bit overwhelmed, afterall it's not every day your male ward turns himself into a girl to save Camelot from an evil Queen who is also a troll.

"Now, I better get busy!" Merlin said, getting up and walking towards the door. Gaius coughed pointedly.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" He questioned and looked at the blanket Merlin was wearing.

"Oh. I don't suppose you have any spare dresses?" He sheepishly asked and Gaius sighed before walking over to a closet and pulling a slightly dusted blue dress out. He shook it, causing the dust to fly around the room, making Merlin cough.

"Here you go." He told his ward, presenting him the dress. Merlin took it and was about to ask why Gaius even owned such a thing in the first place, but decided that discussion could wait. First he had to get into the dress and get the potion.

With Gaius' help and after a bit of struggling and whining, Merlin was finally dressed, and with a small spell had managed to make his boots a bit smaller. It was a good thing the long dress hid them from sight.

Luckily, Merlin easily found Lady Catrina, who was scratching her arm as she hurried back to her chambers. As she entered, Merlin stood himself on a small chair to look through the window.

Once the Lady entered her chamber she made retching sounds, like she was gonna throw up. Her servant managed to convince her to take the potion again, reminding her of all the power and wealth she would get. _If the King wasn't such a tyrant_, the disguised sorcerer thought, _I might have felt sorry for him. _He watched in wonder as the troll skin disappeared from her skin.

Noticing she was going to exit her chambers, Merlin quickly ran and hid behind a corner.

* * *

Arthur stood in front of his father and Lady Catrina, wondering why he had been summoned, when the King started speaking: "There's something important that I," then he looked at Catrina and corrected himself, "that _we_'d like you to address. For too long the people have had it easy, they've grown fat of our indulgence of them."

"How so?" Inquired the prince.

"We provide peace, protection, food. They give us very little in return." The King answered.

"Most of our people are poor, they survive on the few crops they're able to grow." Arthur argued, not liking where this was heading.

"That is what they would have us believe." Stated the Lady Catrina.

"It's what I see everyday." The prince countered.

"We're introducing a new tax." Announced Uther, and the Lady Catrina added: "The people must pay for the sanctuary Camelot provides."

"You can't. The majority are barely able to get buy as it is." The prince said, not wanting his people to suffer. Besides, what had even brought this on? Everything had seemed fine just a few weeks ago.

"Those who refuse to pay it will be arrested and publicly flogged." The King told him, no emotion in his voice.

"We've lived this way for years, no one suggested anything like this before."

"Maybe not to you! But the King confided in me that he has been considering this for some time, haven't you?" Catrina asked, taking the hand of her beloved.

"Yes, I have." Uther answered. Then he ordered: "You are to begin the collections at once."

* * *

Merlin once again stood outside the Lady Catrinas chamber, her servant was snoring inside and Merlin took a deep breath before carefully entering the chamber and moving towards the cupboard, where he knew the potion was being kept. Suddenly Catrinas servant started twitching, turning in his bed and for a terrifying second, Merlin thought he might actually wake up, but luckily he didn't.

Quickly Merlin got the potion and hurried back to Gaius' chamber. He handed him the potion.

"I saw Lady Catrina take this potion, and a patch of troll skin on her arm disappeared." Merlin explained. "Do you think you can make a potion that looks and tastes exactly the same as this?" She asked.

"Well, yes, but without the troll magic it won't have the same effect." The old man said.

"Exactly!" Merlin exclaimed. "If I can exchange this potion with one that isn't magical…"

Understanding dawned on Gaius' face as he mused: "So Catrina will keep taking it, but it'll no longer work."

"And she'll turn into a troll. Think you can do it?" Asked Merlin.

"I don't know."

Ignoring Gaius' words Merlin continued: "We'll have to make the switch before morning, or Jonas will notice."

"Yeah, it's going to be a long night." The physician foretold.

* * *

Gaius cryptically regarded the two potions, they at least looked the same.

Merlin chose that moment to loudly close his door and come down the stairs, yelling: "So what's in it?!"

"Nothing too potent." The old man said, listing the ingredients.

"Sounds…delicious." The young warlock commented, sounding very disgusted.

"Good, 'cause you're going to taste it." The physician said, holding the potion towards Merlin.

"No way."

"It's completely harmless." Gaius assured him, but that was not the problem here.

"Uh, no!" Merlin said, but it was obvious his resolve was weakening. Tentatively, his feminine han moved in the direction of the potion, and he slowly dipped the tip of his finger inside it.

Merlin looked at his finger in disgust before letting it touch his tongue. Immediately he was coughing, trying to get that horrible taste out of his mouth.

"Ugh, that is disgusting." Merlin complained, wiping his tongue on the back of his hand.

"Yes, to you, but not to a troll." Gaius stated, not even sounding the least bit sorry.

Damn Pendragons! If they didn't always go and fall for love spells, Merlin would not be sitting on the stairs as a girl and trying some disgusting potion.

"I can't even believe you had me put that in my mouth." Merlin exclaimed.

"Yes. And now try the original."

Merlin gave a girlish whine, he could hear Arthurs voice in his head, saying _God, you're such a girl Merlin_. The worst thing, the prat would be right. Right now there's no denying that he is physically a girl.

Just like the first time, he immediately coughed and spit the substance out.

"Does it taste roughly the same?" Inquired Gaius.

"Yes, it's horrible!" Merlin responded.

"Are you sure? Cause if there's too big a difference Catrina will notice."

"It tastes exactly the same." Merlin claimed, sounding rather annoyed. Must be those girl hormones making him more prone to mood swings.

Gaius smelled the potion for the sake of carefulness and said: "Let's hope she thinks so too."

* * *

After making sure the room was empty, Merlin quickly snuck in there and placed the fake potion in the cupboard, when suddenly he heard footsteps approaching. Oh fuck! Heart nearly beating out of his chest, Merlin frantically looked around and ran into the closet, just in time. A second later Jonas was putting his stuff on the table.

Merlin looked through the gap and saw Jonas ready to pour himself a drink. Shit! The cupboard was still open! Careful not to be seen he whispered: "_Fýrbendum fæst_"

Jonas walked over to the cupboard, but seeing nothing wrong, he simply returned to his weird sitting position and drank whatever it was.

* * *

Arthur was taking a walk through the lower town, his thoughts wandering to his idiot manservant. _I wonder if he's okay. Hopefully he hasn't been eaten by any wild creatures yet. Nah, they wouldn't go for Merlin, he's all skin and bones._

The prince was pulled out of his musings when he saw two knights holding an old man down. Horrified he asked: "What do you think you're doing?"

"He's refusing to pay the Kings tax." One of the knights responded.

"You ask for too much. I've given all I can." The old man spoke up.

"It's not enough!" The knight stated.

The bystanders, including Gwen, were looking at him expectantly.

"Let me see." Arthur demanded. He looked inside the small satchel. The mans last coins, how could they so cruelly take this from him? He gave the man his money and ordered: "Release him."

"The King said-" The knight argued, but Arthur would have none of it.

"Release him!" He repeated, and the crowd gave him grateful looks, their hearts warmed by their princes' kindness.

"Give 'em back their money, all of it."

The people bowed gratefully as he walked away. He hoped he had made the right choice.

* * *

"I gave you a direct order." The King said.

"The people cannot afford to pay the tax." Arthur argued, trying to defend his actions.

"Don't tell me you're naive enough to take them at their word." Queen Catrina spat.

"We have their loyalty, their good will, do not forsake that by making unreasonable demands." The prince warned.

"Is it so unreasonable for a King to expect his subjects to obey him?" Demanded Catrina in a rather mocking tone.

"They'll starve." Arthur claimed, getting rather frustrated by this discussion.

"Nonsense. They've grown too soft. Remember these are your subjects, not your friends." Uther spoke, standing up from his throne.

"Why can't they be both?" Arthur asked, thinking about the friendship he and his manservant shared.

"Because we rule the people, not the other way around." The King answered.

"I think you're wrong."

At Arthurs words the Queen gave her husband a horrified look and Uther advanced towards his only son. "I beg your pardon."

"I said you're wrong, without the people there is no Camelot. We're as much their servant as they are ours." Arthur claimed, not letting himself be intimidated by his father.

Now Catrina also got up from her seat, coming to stand behind Uther. "You allow him to address you in this manner?"

"No, I do not. It will not be tolerated. You will take your men down into the town and go to every house, collecting the payments I demand."

"I will not." The prince responded, holding his ground.

"Get out of my sight." Uther angrily whispered.

Arthur cast one last long look at his father, waiting for his features to soften, but as it was not about to happen, he left the room, feeling angry and hurt.

* * *

Merlin didn't know how much time had passed since he had sneaked into Catrinas chamber, but standing still in a closet was definitely not one of his favorite the door opened and the Lady Catrina entered the room in a rather unladylike manner and snapped: "It is time for my potion."

"Are your plans progressing as you hoped?" Asked Jonas while getting the potion.

"Yes."

Then the disguised troll took the potion into her hand, but out of nowhere her face scrunched up and she walked over to the closet, all the while making weird sounds.

_This is_ _it_, thought Merlin, _I've been discovered_.

Turned out Merlin this was one of the few times Merlin was wrong, the troll just looked into the mirror and touched her hair, saying: "I must admit, that crown will look rather fetching. All that gold and them lovely jewels." She smiled, and it made her look so ugly, even in human disguise, that Merlin had trouble believing he ever found her pretty.

Then came the moment of truth, as she downed Gaius' fake potion. She didn't seem to notice any difference and simply straightened up, letting Jonas lead her out of the room.

* * *

The prince hurried through the castle and ran straight into a young woman, she was about to fall, but thanks to Arthurs quick instincts, he quickly wrapped an arm around her waist.

He looked down into her breathtaking blue eyes, wide with shock. It took her a few seconds to realize that she had just been caught by the prince of Camelot. To the princes' disappointment she quickly scrambled out of his hold, nearly tripping over her dress. Now, as she stood infront of him, he could tell she was about 2 or 3 inches shorter than him, and her simple blue dress complimented her eyes. Something about her felt familiar, but he just couldn't put his fingers on it.

"I'm sorry, sire. Are you alright?" Merlin asked, not referring to Arthurs physical state, but more his emotional one.

"Uh, yes. I am fine." The prince answered, looking at the raven haired beauty once more. He could use some company… "What is your name?"

Merlin was at a loss of words. Arthur had just asked for his name. He obviously couldn't say Merlin, racking his brain he blurted out "Emrys."

"Emrys…" Arthur repeated, liking how easily the name rolled of his tongue. "Well, Emrys, accompany me for a walk through the forest." He said, more like ordered.

Merlin had the word 'prat' on the tip of his tongue, but thought better of it. It certainly won't do him any good to insult the prince now, he could do that when he was once again looking like himself. Besides, Arthur looked quite troubled, and as his friend, Merlin felt inclined to help him, even if he is a clotpole. He nodded and Arthur flashed him that brilliant smile of his and held out his arm. Merlin looked confused for a few seconds, but remembered that he was a girl right, and hooked his arm into Arthurs.

They didn't talk a lot, just some small talk, but the silence didn't feel awkward at all, it was comforting and both young adults found themselves lost in thought. But all good things come to an end, and so, once the castle was in sight, they bid each other farewell.

* * *

Sometime later Arthur was sat in his chair, staring off into the distance. The walk had been nice, but it was only a brief distraction, and now that he was alone, he tried to think of ways not to disappoint his father and do the right thing at the same time. His rather fruitless musings were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in."

He felt a sting of disappointment when it was Gwen who entered, he had hoped that maybe it was his father, despite the knowledge that his father would never make the effort of coming to his chambers just to speak to him. Another part of him had hoped it would be Emrys, or maybe Merlin, even if that was rather unlikely since he was being hunted right now.

"Guinevere." He said, trying not to let her see his disappointment.

"I saw what you did earlier; the people owe you their gratitude." She told him as she walked towards him.

"The people owe me nothing, father is still going to impose the tax." Arthur muttered, not bothering to conceal the bitterness in his voice.

"Can he not be persuaded?" The maidservant timidly asked, a shimmer of hope shining in her eyes.

"Not by me. He can't stand the sight of me." The young man admitted.

"That's not true, the King loves you."

"You should have heard the way he spoke to me." He exclaimed, getting out of his chair.

"I'm sure he was angry, but you are still his son." Gwen tried to reason. "Everyone appreciates what you did", she continued," They know you tried and they won't forget that."

Arthur didn't seem to have heard her as he supposed: "Maybe he is right. One day I will be the King of Camelot, I cannot be a friend to the people as well as their ruler."

"That's not true! And you will prove it when you become King." Gwen interrupted, moving even closer towards the prince. "You have a kind heart Arthur, don't ever change, not for anyone."

Their moment was interrupted by a knock on the door and Sir Leon entered.

"The King has sent for you."

Arthur, followed by Sir Leon, walked into the throne room, which was already filled with knights and Gaius, his father and his stepmother.

"Father." The prince greeted.

"I'm relaxing your duties, revoking your title." King Uther explained.

"What?!" Arthur couldn't believe it. This had to be some sort of nightmare, there was just no way his father, however cold he might act at times, would do this.

"We live in dangerous times, I cannot allow you to undermine my authority."

"You've always welcomed my council in the past." Arthur stated.

"You stood against me for all the people to see." Uther argued.

"I'm sorry, any future agreements I have will be held in private."

"It is too late for that." The King said, walking towards his throne.

"Father-!" Arthur exclaimed, moving towards the man, but he was interrupted by said man.

"You are to be disinherited, with immediate effect. You are no longer crown prince of Camelot."

"Sire, Arthur is your son, your natural heir-" The court physician started, but Arthur stopped him.

Then the young man crossed the distance between himself and his father, now only a few inches away from the King, he began to speak.

"You've always taught me to be true to my heart and that's all I've ever tried to do. To be the man you wanted me to be, someone you are proud to call your son."

Uther looked at his son for a few moments before saying: "My decision is final."

Arthur stared at him disbelievingly and the turned around, wordlessly leaving the room.

Taking the parchment out of his wives hands, the King proclaimed: "Queen Catrina will be named as rightful heir to the throne. The ceremony will begin forthwith."

Then he sat down, the queen intertwining their hands and giving the audience a sharp look. Leon hesitantly started clapping, the others soon joining in, but it was clear no one welcomed this change.

**Well, that's it for the first chapter. How did you like it? Some feedback would be appreciated, and feel free to point out any language mistakes I might have made.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Sup, I'm back with chapter 2. I hope you'll enjoy reading it ; ) Btw, thanks to everyone who followed, favorited or reviewed this story, you guys are the best!**

The door to Gaius' quarters was thrown open and Merlin cheerfully entered, proclaiming: "We've done it! Catrina has drank the fake potion. "

Merlin smiled, but Gaius' mood did not improve, so Merlin inquired: "What's wrong?"

The man turned to his ward and told him about Catrina now being heir to the throne.

"So if Uther dies, she will rule Camelot." Merlin concluded. So now he didn't just have to worry about Arthurs life, but Uthers as well, else their efforts will have been for naught and Arthur will never become the once and future King.

Merlin couldn't help but wonder how this must be affecting Arthur. He wanted to help his friend, but how? Right now he looked like an ordinary female servant…an idea formed in his mind.

He left Gaius' quarters and making sure no one was watching, summoned a plate filled with Arthurs favorite fruits. A proud smile graced his lips as he made his way towards the princes chamber.

He, for once in his life, knocked on the door and heard a grumbled "Enter." Carefully opening the door Merlin stepped into the room, but Arthur was looking out of the window, paying him no attention.

Normally Merlin would think him an arrogant prat for such ignorance, but this time he should be forgiven, afterall his father had just disinherited him.

"Sire, I have brought you some food in hopes of cheering you up. You did the right thing by standing up for what you believed to be right, by caring about your people, and I'm sure that given some time the King will realize that and make you the heir again."

Arthur turned around and looked at the servant girl, he appreciated her words, but she should not speak like that of the King, even if Arthur had really needed to hear those words. Once the plate with fruit was placed infront of him, he spoke up: "I am honored that you have such faith in me, but it would do you well to remember your place and not speak ill of the Kings judgment."

Arthur didn't know why, but he felt guilty when he saw the hurt in those piercing blue eyes. And why was it that this beautiful, kind girl for some reason reminded Arthur of his lanky, clumsy idiot manservant?

With a bow, Merlin turned around and left, not understanding why Arthurs words hurt. Damn all of these female hormones, making him so f*cking emotional!

* * *

"We are gathered here to bear witness to the naming of Queen Catrina as the rightful heir to Camelot." Geoffrey announced.

Arthur looked at the ground, hoping that no one would notice how close to tears he was. All his life he'd tried making his father proud, doing his best to be deserving of his title, but what he hadn't managed in years, Catrina had done in mere weeks.

Geoffrey turned around to face the Queen, asking her: "Are you willing to take the oath?"

"I am." She replied.

"Do you solemnly swear to govern the people of Camelot, to uphold the laws and customs of the land?" Geoffrey read.

"I do." Catrina answered and started scratching her arm. Merlin, who was watching from above, smirked slightly. Soon everyone would see Catrina for who, or better _what _she truly was.

"Will you to your power cause law and justice and mercy to be executed in all your judgments?" Geoffrey continued.

"I will." The rather frustrated looking Queen replied.

"Will you," Catrina quickly pulled up her sleeve, revealing a patch of troll skin to a surprised looking Jonas, then she swiftly pulled it down again, the movement going unnoticed by the guests.

" to the utmost of your power maintain the laws-" Catrina cut him off.

"Yes yes" She hastily answered.

"I'm sorry, you must let me finish. The wording must be exactly right to be binding." Geoffrey explained.

"Well get on with it then. I mean really, where did you dig up this old crow from?" She asked, turning to a besotted looking Uther.

"She's right, get on with it." The King ordered. This caused quite a few guests to look mildly surprised.

"Will you, to the utmost of your power-" Geoffrey started, only to once again be interrupted by the Queens impatient 'yes yes yes'.

He looked rather annoyed, but continued "Maintain the laws and customs-"

"I will, I will."

"Of the land and serve the people of Camelot?"

"Yes! Just shut up and give me the crown!" The Lady yelled.

Geoffrey took the crown from a red pillow and held it out. The disguised troll couldn't take it anymore and grabbed the crown, putting it on her head and ran out of the throne room.

"Catrina!" Uther exclaimed, getting up and following his wife, Morgana joining him.

Catrina ran down the Corridors, seeing guards infront of her and knowing Uther was behind her she fled into a side passage.

"Catrina!" Uther exclaimed, making the woman turn towards him. Merlin, who was hidden behind a pillar, used the moment to close the door Catrina was headed for with magic.

"Whatever's the matter?" Uther asked, giving his Queen a concerned look.

"I'm sorry!" She said, holding both her hands up, but realizing one wasn't really human anymore she quickly put it behind her back.

"I don't know what came over me. I just, something felt so hot." She claimed, fanning herself with one hand while slowly moving backwards.

"You know, I think I need to be on my own right now." She said, pointing to the door behind her.

"Are you alright?" Morgana questioned, moving forwards, but Catrina quickly put a hand in front of herself. At the same time Arthur now also joined the group.

"I'm fine, really. Thank you. I just…"

"_Fýrbendum fæst _" Merlin whispered, effectively locking the door.

"Come on, come on, come on." Catrina said, pulling on the door and sounding like she was hyperventilating. "Open!" She screeched and then froze, hoping that this slip of her voice hadn't given her away.

Everyone stared at her for a few seconds before Arthur stepped forward.

"Let me."

This seemed to make the Queen even more desperate to open the door and once Arthur caught sight of her hand he suddenly backed away, yelling "What's that?" and pointing at her arm.

The woman turned around, but she couldn't explain herself and just made some really weird noises.

Merlin grinned in satisfaction as Catrina started transforming, whereas Morgana looked panicked and asked: "What's happening? Somebody help her!"

"You're a troll!" Arthur exclaimed.

The troll gasped and Uther demanded: "How dare you speak about her like that?"

Morgana turned to her guardian in shock. Was he blind?

"What is wrong with you? Look at the state of her!" Arthur reasoned, pointing at the confused looking troll, but Uther just smiled lovingly.

"I don't believe it." Morgana whispered, shaking her head lightly.

Suddenly the troll…ripped the door off its hinges! Arthur and Morgana jumped backwards, but Uther seemed unfazed by his Queens form and actions.

Arthur decided to give it another try and said: "She just ripped a door off its hinges, doesn't that tell you something?!"

"Enough!"

"She's a giant, grey-" Arthur started describing.

"Stinky." Morgana added.

"Stinking troll!" The prince finished.

"Stop it!" Uther commanded, walking over to the crown and the shoes his wife had left behind. He picked the items up and turned towards his son and his ward. "Insult my wife again and it'll be the last thing you ever do." Then he went after his beloved, the audience staring at the door in shock.

Meanwhile Uther comforted his Queen, the Kings idea of comforting involved pushing the troll on the bed and kissing her.

* * *

Merlin was utterly confused. How come that the King didn't see that she was a troll? Sure, some people say that love makes blind, but this seemed to go a little too far. There had to be a way to free Uther from the trolls grasp and make Arthur crown prince again. Preferably before half Camelot dies of starvation.

As Merlin strolled through the castle, he couldn't help but overhear a conversation between two servants and the steward.

"Well someone has to attend the prince." The steward sounded exasperated. This discussion had probably been going on for quite some time.

"But not me! I heard he throws with goblets at his servant!" One servant exclaimed horrified and Merlin nearly snickered. Yeah, Arthur was quite grumpy in the morning.

"And he uses them as training dummies!" A young boy cried out.

Merlin then smirked. This was perfect. He walked around the corner and greeted the men.

"Hello. I couldn't help but overhear that you are looking for a temporary replacement of the princes manservant." Merlin said in his now sweet, girly voice, giving them a pleasant smile.

The steward nodded.

"I think I could help out."

Everyone looked at Merlin like he had grown a second head, but the steward let the thought go through his head. Sure, he wasn't fond of having to exploit an innocent girls good will, poor thing probably had no idea what she was signing up for, but this was the easiest solution.

"Alright, you may take over the position as the princes temporary maidservant. You shall start tomorrow morning by waking him and bringing him breakfast."

Merlin grinned, thanking the man and walking off , glad that he didn't have to worry about not being able to protect Arthur anymore.

Gaius, together with a few knights decided that they should try talking to the King once more, so they entered the throne room, bowing deeply before their King.

"I wasn't aware we were here to convene the council. What's this about?"

Gaius and Leon locked eyes, neither willing to start.

"Come on, someone speak up." The King demanded, walking forwards.

Gaius looked at the ground, then at the King and said: "I'm afraid it's your wife, Sire."

"Yes, what about her?"

"It's a rather delicate matter, Sire." Gaius answered, dreading the Kings reaction to what was about to come.

"Gaius, you've been my trusted advisor for many years, you can speak as you will."

"I don't suppose it has escaped your notice Sire, but we just wanted to make absolutely certain…you do realize your wife is a troll, Sire."

"I beg your pardon?" The King replied, giving Gaius an amused look, like he assumed this to be some kind of joke.

"At least that's the way she looks to us, Sire, what with the…wards and the…nose and…" Gaius described, as Leon added : " the smell"

"What?" The King questioned, his playful mood gone.

"She also has what appears to be…a set of fangs."

"What?" The King asked disbelievingly.

"I wouldn't really say they were fangs, more like tusks." Leon corrected.

"Yes they are more like tusks." Gaius repeated. "Not that we think it is necessarily a bad thing, we just thought that we ought to point it out to you in case it has passed you by." The physician explained.

The King looked thoughtful for a moment, then proclaimed: "The next person to insult Queen Catrina will be charged with treason and beheaded according to the laws of the land."

Hearing that, the hopeful expressions of the council members fell, and they left, feeling utterly disappointed and confused.

As Gaius entered his quarters the by now familiar form of the disguised Merlin was already looking through his spellbook.

"Uther must be enchanted, it is the only explanation." Gaius stated.

"Which is why we have to find a way to break it."

"You won't find anything in your magic books, troll enchantments are too strong." The physician claimed and looked at Merlin.

"Then what are we going to do?" The confused boy-turned-girl asked.

"You must speak to the dragon. If there's a way to break Catrinas hold on Uther, he'll know it. But be careful, dragons and trolls have been close allies in the past."

So Merlin made his way to the dragons cave and told him what was going on. Of course that overgrown lizard had to laugh.

"This isn't funny!"

"Oh it is, it is. The thought of Uther marrying a troll. Was it a very public affair?" Kilgharrah asked, still roaring with laughter.

"Public enough! Don't laugh! If she can't be stopped Arthur will never become King, Albion will never be born." Merlin said, knowing that if the beast cared about one thing then it was Albion and that stupid destiny.

"I'm sorry, you are right of course." The dragon apologized, calming down.

"How can we break the enchantment?"

"These are not trifling tricks, troll magic is very powerful." And here we go again with those useless answers. As if Merlin hadn't figured that out by now, he wasn't that much of an idiot!

"There has to be a way!" The young warlock claimed.

"The only way you can break this enchantment is if Uther were to cry tears of true remorse."

"How do we make him do that?" Merlin asked, because at times he wasn't even sure Uther Pendragon was capable of such a thing.

"That I can't answer, Uthers heart is cold as stone. He's never been sorry for anything."

Hopefully Gaius would know of a way. Merlin started walking away when Kilgharrah called out to him: "Young warlock, it was some time ago you promised to set me free. The help I give is not unconditional."

Merlin nodded, feeling dread pool in his stomach at the thought of having to set Kilgharrah free, but a promise was a promise, so he gave the dragon a quick nod and then hastily left.

* * *

"The dragon said he'll have to cry tears of true remorse to break the enchantment" Merlin explained to Gaius while pacing back and forth.

"Well that's not going to be easy. Uthers heart's closed to everyone."

"Not everyone. Arthur." Merlin said, because no matter what, Arthur would always be Uthers son, and for once that might actually work out in their favor.

"Then there's only one course of action we can take, Uther must see his son die."

* * *

In the night Gaius walked towards the princes chamber, knocking and entering without waiting for a reply. Arthur shot up out of his bed and looked at Gaius with wide eyes.

"Gaius, what are you doing here?" The startled prince asked.

"Sire, I believe that your father has been enchanted and after some research I have found out how to break the enchantment, but I would require your assistance."

"Of course I'll help. So what's the plan?" Arthur asked enthusiastically, happy to help get his father back.

"Well…I have made a potion which will make it appear as though you have died." At that Arthur gave the old man a questioning look.

"You needn't worry, it will only bring you to the brink of death." The physician explained.

"Oh, only to the brink." The prince repeated, sounding rather displeased.

"We have no other choice, we have to make your father cry."

"He doesn't care about me anymore!" Arthur claimed, and it was obvious how hurt he was by this.

"Nonsense, that's Catrinas influence, I've known your father for many many years, there's never been anyone or anything he treasured more than you. It is safe, a single drop of the antidote will reverse the effects immediately."

"Antidote?" The prince inquired.

"The potion will lower your heart rate and breathing so it will look like you are dead."

"And the antidote reverses the effects?"

"Yes." Gaius confirmed. "If it's administered in time." He added.

"If it isn't?"

"You will be dead." Gaius replied.

Arthur contemplated what to do. Take the potion and risk dying, or ensure Camelots downfall…he knew he had to do the right thing.

"I'll do it." He announced and took the potion out of Gaius hand, downing it in on go. Blech! It tasted terrible! Gaius looked at him expectantly, and for a few seconds nothing happened, but then everything went black.

Merlin, who had been waiting outside the door, silently crept inside after hearing Arthur say he'd do it. Noticing the prince was falling forwards Merlin raised his hand, his magic stopping Arthur from hitting the ground. Then he slowly turned him and made him lie down on his back. Once he finished his work, he noticed Gaius' disapproving stare, the old man looked ready to scold him, but remembering they had to hurry he quickly left to inform the King of his sons 'passing'.

Merlin went to hide in a dark corner of the room, the antidote safely clutched in his hand.

Not long after, the King entered the room and fell to his knees at his 'dead' sons side.

"My boy." He brokenly whispered, voice thick with unshed tears.

"It was my fault. I'm sorry." He continued, grabbing his sons limp shoulders.

"My son…my _son_." Uther lifted Arthurs shoulder, pressing his face into his sons hair. Lady Catrina waddled over to him, intending to pull him away.

"Come away, there's nothing you can do for him now."

"I killed him! I killed my only son." The King cried out, not letting go of Arthur.

The troll then started muttering words in an ancient language, but as Uther turned around to face her, his expression one of shock and disgust, the troll knew the enchantment had been broken.

"C-Catrina? What kind of trickery is this?" Uther asked, scrambling away from his wife.

"How I suffered these last weeks, allowing you to touch me." The troll ranted, shivering in disgust and Uther put his forearm over his mouth to prevent himself from throwing up.

"Having to share a bed with you! It's repulsive." The troll continued, stepping towards Uther.

"I know the feeling."

"Oh, I've been looking forward to this."

Uther, who seemed to have partially gotten over his shock yelled: "Guards! Seize…it." The guards had trouble fighting the troll though.

Merlin used this distraction to quickly make his way to Arthur, kneeling beside the young man and giving him the antidote. Once a drop of the antidote had passed his lips, he seemed to be slowly waking up. Merlin helped him up, but Arthur didn't bother taking notice of the servant. As soon as he was on his feet, he ran at the troll. He tried to punch her, but the troll had anticipated it and elbowed him in the stomach.

"Is that any way to treat your dear old stepmother?" She asked, grabbing him by the shoulders and flinging him into a wall.

Uther was enraged and grabbed his sword, swinging it at the troll, but she quickly knocked him down with a punch to the face. Jonas then entered the room and stood over Arthur, raising a dagger, but luckily Arthur chose that moment to regain consciousness and swiftly rolled out of the way, grabbing his sword and stabbing the inhuman servant.

Merlin noticed the troll was now making its way towards Arthur and muttered a spell under his breath. "_Flíeh hraegl_."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the carpet beneath the troll slid forwards, making her fall to the ground. Arthur wasted no time and rammed his sword into her stomach.

The troll passed away with one last, stinky fart.

**That's it for the second chapter, I hope you liked it. Reviews are always welcome!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys, thank you for the follows, favorites and reviews! This chapter will contain spoilers for S2 e07, so beware, and I got the spells from the merlin wiki. Now, enjoy!**

Now that they had taken care of the troll, Merlin was ready to go back to his original form.

"Gaius?" Merlin tentatively asked from up in his room. Gaius entered Merlin's room, surprised to find a still female Merlin sitting on the bed. The physician had assumed Merlin would not be able to wait to finally change back. The female looked at him, big blue eyed wide with fear as he whispered: "The reverse spell, it won't work."

"There is a potion, it'll take a few hours, but it should reverse the effects." Gaius told him and Merlin's face lit up, his signature grin on his face.

"Thanks Gaius!" He exclaimed, hugging his guardian.

The next morning, since the potion wasn't finished yet, Merlin would have to perform his duties as a girl. He quickly got the princes breakfast and entered his room, putting the tray on the table. He then drew back the curtains, saying: "Rise and shine!"

Arthur groggily opened his eyes, wondering since when Merlin's voice sounded like a girls. Then his eyes landed on a familiar girl who was wearing a blue dress. _Emrys_ he concluded. That meant Merlin wasn't back yet. Arthur felt slightly sad, but reminded himself that Merlin would return soon enough, he probably just took some time, depending on how far away from the castle he'd gotten.

"Are you just going to stare holes into the ceiling or will you actually get up to eat breakfast?" Emrys asked, and Arthur was taken aback, the only person who ever dared speak to him in such a manner was Merlin.

"I shall have breakfast in bed." Arthur stated, sitting up. The girl nodded, and Arthur could've sworn she had muttered the word 'prat' under her breath as she brought him the tray.

Merlin set to cleaning Arthur's room and mentally scolded himself for his sassiness. He'd have to be more careful or else Arthur might actually figure out who he was, and wouldn't that be fun? Besides he would only need to behave himself until Lunch, then the potion should be finished.

Deeming Arthurs room tidy enough, Merlin picked out some clothes for the prat to wear. Walking over to the bed, Merlin took the tray and put it back on the table while the prince slowly got out of bed.

Arthur had noticed that Emrys had picked out clothes for him to wear, and he briefly wondered if she would help him dress. She was Merlin's replacement, so technically it was her duty. The prince blushed at the thought of having the pretty maid dressing or even better, undressing him. He took a deep breath, pushing the naughty thoughts to the back of his mind.

Emrys dressed him calmly, which surprised Arthur, normally girls would always blush when seeing him half naked.

"Alright, today you need to polish my armor, sharpen my sword and do the laundry." The prince told Merlin.

Merlin nodded, a smile gracing his lips at the absence of a certain, very dislikable chore. He decided to start with the laundry and once he had finished that, started with the armor. He didn't get very far though, as lunch time came rather fast. Merlin cheerfully brought Arthur his lunch before practically running to Gaius' chamber. He'd finally get to be a male again!

"Is it done?!" Merlin shouted as he threw the door to Gaius' quarters open.

"Yes my boy." The physician answered, chuckling lightly at his wards impatience as he handed him the vial.

Merlin downed it in one go, grimacing at the horrible aftertaste. Belatedly he realized he had forgotten to change out of the dress, but looking down at his body he did not notice any change. Merlin locked eyes with Gaius, who seemed just as perplexed.

"Uhm…is it supposed to take this long?" Merlin asked tentatively, and Gaius shook his head even though he had both already known the answer.

The still female Merlin gulped, scared what this could mean.

"You should speak to the great dragon later." Gaius suggested and Merlin nodded dreadfully. He had no doubt the stupid beast would spend half an hour laughing at Merlin's predicament, then talk about coins and destiny and finally give Merlin a stupid riddle that was supposed to be helpful. The warlock internally groaned.

* * *

After getting dismissed by Arthur, Merlin stopped by Gaius to get a piece of bread and then hurried down to the cave.

"Kilgarrah! I have come to ask for your help."

The dragon settled on his usual rock, giving Merlin an unimpressed look, at least that was what he had intended to do, but once he caught sight of the still female form of the warlock, he burst out laughing. He had a pretty good idea what this was about.

"You wish to know how to return to being male, do you not?" The dragon questioned.

"Yes, indeed. So…will you tell me?"

"I'm afraid to say that it is not possible. You taking on this disguise has changed your destiny. I'm afraid to fulfil your destiny, you now have to stay female."

Merlin stared at Kilgarrah, waiting for him to burst out laughing and then tell him the solution. When he noticed that wasn't going to happen, he paled considerably. This could not be happening! Angry, Merlin shouted: "Well, thanks for nothing!" and then started walking off.

"Remember, you are but one side of a coin" The dragon yelled after him and Merlin made a frustrated noise.

Merlin made his way back to Gaius and the physician looked up from his book, immediately noticing the distressed look on his young wards face.

"I assume it didn't go well?"

"Didn't go well?!" Merlin asked incredulously. "It went terrible! According to that stupid dragon, I am doomed to stay like this!"

Gaius sighed, he pitied the enraged warlock, but with how recklessly Merlin used his magic, something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. Even though Gaius always thought it would be something along the lines of turning someone into a toad, not Merlin becoming a girl.

"You should go to sleep, my bo- uh girl. Tomorrow we can figure out what should happen next." It was obvious Merlin wasn't fond of the idea of going to sleep instead of working on fixing this, but even he, more like she, knew that they wouldn't accomplish anything with Merlin this emotional. Reluctantly, Merlin walked to his room, but sleep didn't come easy that night. So many thoughts were swimming in the young warlocks mind. Should he tell Arthur? What was his now changed destiny?

***** 3 weeks later *****

Merlin woke up to terrible stomach cramps and a back ache. And he felt something wet down in his private parts. He looked down, and screamed "Gaius!" at the top of his lungs. He was bleeding! Out of his vagina! This could not be healthy!

Gaius came quick, looking at his distressed ward and then saw the red stain on a certain area of his nightgown. He quickly put two and two and walked over to Merlin, putting a hand on the watery eyed girls shoulder. "It's okay Merlin, it's just menstruation."

"Menstruation? What kind of illness is called menstruation?!" The clueless country boy/girl said, continuing to look horrified.

"Merlin…menstruation is no illness. As you know, women can conceive children, so every month an egg cell ripens inside of a woman's body, if it is not fertilized…" And so Gaius explained the concept of conception to Merlin in detail. At the end Merlin wasn't sure if he should feel better or worse. One thing was clear, he never hated being a woman more than in those moments.

Gaius then asked Merlin to collect some wood and told a servant to take care of the prince, claiming Emrys was not feeling good and would need the morning to rest. The older man hoped that by the time Merlin returned, his/her pains would have subsided.

**(From this point forward I'll refer to Merlin as a girl.)** Despite Gaius' effort to help Merlin, carrying wood just frustrated the young woman, as it made her back hurt even more and she constantly dropped some wood as she nearly tripped over her dress. Letting out an angry huff, Merlin put the wood down and settled on the ground, staring ahead at Camelot.

A few feet ahead there was smoke coming up, and Merlin smiled softly as an idea to lift her spirits formed in her head.

"_Hors, beride þá heofonum_." She whispered and the smoke formed into a horse.

Then it disappeared and with it did Merlin's smile. She frowned at the pile of wood before bending down to pick it up. There was some rustling coming from behind her and a woman grabbed Merlins should, pulling her up to face her.

"Did you see it? The smoke? Did you see it?" The panting woman asked, fear in her voice.

Merlin denied seeing anything, acting surprised and clueless.

"Are you blind? You were right here…it was magic. There is a sorcerer here. We must tell the King!" Then the stranger took off running.

"No! Wait!" Merlin tried to yell after her, but the woman ignored her.

* * *

Later, standing next to Gaius, Merlin was scared as the woman talked to the King about the incident in the woods. Arthur offered to hunt the sorcerer himself, but the King decided to send for the Witchfinder. That did not sound very good.

"How many times Merlin?! How many times must I drive it into that thick skull of yours that your magic is a secret to be guarded with your life?! What were you thinking?!" Gaius yelled as he and Merlin entered his quarters. How could the girl be so foolish?! Using magic for such an unnecessary purpose!

"I…I wasn't thinking." Merlin admitted, feeling terrible.

"Well think, girl, think!" Gaius angrily replied, glaring at Merlin.

"It was just a bit of fun." Merlin tried to defend, even though she was aware that 'a bit of fun' was no satisfactory explanation for risking her life.

"It was magic, and it was seen!"

"You're right, I'm sorry." Merlin apologized.

"You must hide the book, anything that can connect you to sorcery in anyway." Gaius ordered, pacing a bit. He stopped and stared at Merlin, who was still leaning against the table. He gave her an incredulous look, and she finally seemed to catch on. "What, now?"

"Yes, now Merlin." Gaius said exasperated, wondering if his ward could be any more of an idiot. "The man that Uther has sent for, I know him!"

"The Witchfinder?"

"Some know him by that name, I know him as Aredian. He is a force to be reckoned with." Gaius explained, walking closer to Merlin, as if trying to intimidate the young girl, which was kind of ridiculous seeing as they were roughly the same height.

Merlin swallowed thickly, then walked to her room, saying: "I'll get the book."

* * *

Arthur was following his father.

"So, where's he been all this time?" Arthur asked, wanting to get some information about this oh-so-great Witchfinder that he has never heard of. The prince would never admit it out loud, but he was jealous, this man has been away for who knows how long, yet his father seems to have more faith in him than in his own son.

"Wherever the pursuit of sorcery takes him". Uther answered calmly.

"He does all this in your name?"

"The Witch finder serves no one." The King claimed.

"Do you smell it?" A deep, foreign voice asked from out the shadows and both royals turned around, surprise showing in their eyes. A tall man, dressed in black, emerged from behind a stone pillar.

"Do you smell it, Uther?" The man asked, and Arthur was confused. Had that stranger just addressed his father, the King, by his first name?!

"Aredian." The King greeted.

"It's all around us, the foul stench of sorcery, it's infected your great city like a contagion." The stranger, Aredian, claimed, once again moving forward. This time though, Uther also moved forward.

"I welcome you Aredian, thank you for making such haste to be here."

"Let's hope I'm not too late, every hour counts in the war against sorcery. Unchecked it spreads like a disease, seeks out the young and old, the weak and the able, the fair", at that he gave Arthur a pointed look before resuming his pacing, "and the foul alike. You've grown lazy Uther, you've grown idle. Your once noble Camelot is rotten to the core. You stand on the brink of dark oblivion."

After Aredian's speech, Uther looked dumbfounded. Arthur felt the same way Uther did, but his reason was slightly different. It wasn't just Aredian's words that had shocked him, but the fact that his father had _let _Aredian say those words.

"I'm at your disposal, Aredian. My knights will aid you in any way they can." The prince offered, hoping that by working together, he could find out what made this guy so special.

"You must be Arthur."

"I must be." Arthur retorted, nodding his head while internally wondering if this man was socially impaired.

"You're a great warrior, the finest this Kingdom has ever known." Aredian claimed, and even had the nerve to give his father a tight smile, knowing full and well what he was implying. To be honest, Arthur couldn't care less about this man's praise. Still, he was a prince so he politely answered:

"Thank you."

"So you won't be offended when I say that I shall have no need of you. Or your knights. The subtle craft of sorcery can only be fought by subtler means. Methods honed over decades of studying. Methods known only to myself." The man confidently answered.

"We are grateful for your help."

"Gratitude alone can't keep a man alive, you must put food in his belly." _The nerve of him! He should feel honored to get the Kings gratitude! What a…prat! If Merlin were here, he would agree with me. _Arthur thought to himself.

"I will pay your price Aredian, whatever it may be."

"I will bid you good night." The Witchfinder said, walking off to retire.

"Aredian!" Arthur called after him. "When do you begin?"

"I've already begun." He replied.

* * *

"I don't like this Aredian guy. The way he talks, as though he is some kind of God and we are lucky he has decided to grace us with his presence." Arthur complained to Emrys as she dressed him in his nightshirt. He had to admit that over the past month she had been in his service, he had taken quite a liking to her, and no, it was not just 'cause she was very pleasant to look at. To be honest, she reminded him a bit of Merlin, never hesitating to meet his eyes, and she occasionally called him a prat. But she was still more polite than Merlin could ever hope to have been.

Merlin, thinking about his friend, who still hadn't returned never failed to send a stab of sadness through his heart.

"That means something, especially coming from you, Sire." Emrys replied, looking at him and giving him a teasing grin that made Arthur want to kiss her. He reminded himself that she was his maidservant, he couldn't just sleep with her and then expect things to go back to normal like he had done during his teenage years. She was too good company for that.

"Well, if there's nothing you need, I'll retire now." Emrys said, looking at Arthur for confirmation. The prince nodded and with a soft smile and a whispered "Sleep well." the serving girl left the room.

* * *

Merlin entered her room and threw herself on the small bed and sighed. Gods, ever since she became a girl she had been dealing with these really confusing feelings, especially when a certain prince was concerned.

Before this incident Merlin never would have wondered what it would be like to have Arthurs strong arms wrapped around her, and she also never felt any desire to kiss him. It must be this weird menstruation thingy, Gaius did mention something about weird feelings. Merlin just hoped that it would be over soon, not only was constantly bleeding rather annoying, but these feelings made her work as maidservant a bit more difficult than it already was. Not to mention the problem about the Witchfinder, he had to be up to something if even Arthur, the oblivious prat, noticed something.

Why couldn't Merlin's job be easy for once?

**Thank you for reading this chapter, I wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy new year! **


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